MONITORING (SW) – At least 20 people have been killed and more than 450 wounded by a second wave of explosions from wireless communication devices in Lebanon, the country’s health ministry says.
Walkie-talkies used by the armed group Hezbollah blew up in the southern suburbs of the capital Beirut, the Bekaa Valley, and southern Lebanon – areas seen as its strongholds, reported BBC.
Some of the blasts took place during funerals for some of the 12 people who the ministry said were killed when Hezbollah members’ pagers exploded on Tuesday. Hezbollah blamed Israel for that attack. Israel has not commented.
The attacks came as Israel’s Defence Minister Yoav Gallant announced a “new phase in the war” and as an Israeli army division was redeployed to the north.
UN Secretary General António Guterres warned of the “serious risk of a dramatic escalation” and called on all parties to “exercise maximum restraint”.
Wednesday’s deadly explosions represent another humiliation for Hezbollah and a possible indication that its entire communication network might have been infiltrated by Israel, reported BBC. Many Lebanese are still shocked – and angered – by what happened on Tuesday, when thousands of pagers exploded at the same time, after people received a message they believed had come from the group.
Twelve people – including an eight-year-old girl and an 11-year-old boy – were killed and 2,800 others were wounded by the blasts, according to the Lebanese health minister.
